In a computer programmer interview, it’s essential for you to fully explain and show deep knowledge and skill. However, since computer programming is hard to explain to someone without a deep knowledge of the subject, the HR interview can pose a challenge.
Even if you are talking to someone in IT, you still need to know how to leverage your experiences to best convey your essential skills. In this article, we’ll help you overcome these issues by examining common programmer interview questions and answers and offering tips so you can be better prepared to impress.
What to expect during a programmer interview
Programmer interviews often follow a series of practices to find the strongest candidates. It often includes a phone screen, test and interview. The phone screen is effective at reducing the number of applicants significantly in a cost and time-effective way.
The applicants that participate in this step are screened for their qualifications and ability to answer questions. Testing and interviews can be expensive processes for companies, so any method of reducing the number of applicants prior to this step can make a budgetary difference.
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The second phase of the interview often involves trying to get a critical assessment of each candidate’s skills. Most companies use an automated testing system design to analyze the skills of programmers. During the test, they answer multiple-choice questions to test their understanding of coding principles. Some tests involve real-world programming examples to show that programmers actually have the skills to do the job. Which test is administered depends on the company administering it.
Once the tests are completed and the results have been analyzed, applicants take part in a formal interview. During the interview, programmers are asked specific questions about their background and skills. This proceeds much like a normal interview. However, the interviewer may ask specific questions about programming.
The overall process of interviewing for a programmer position is longer and more costly for companies since it has additional steps. Likewise, it may pose a greater challenge for applicants, or at least gives them more to do. Fortunately, it is possible to prepare for a programmer interview easily.
Common programmer interview questions
There are several common programming interview questions that you can expect to be asked. There are many problem-solving questions with variations but ask the same thing. There are also many general options for non-technical interviewers to rely on. Here are a few common questions.
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What programming languages do you know?
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What is the most complex project that you have finished?
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What makes you a good programmer?
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What are you doing to stay current on the latest technologies?
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How do you approach a frustrating programming situation?
What programming languages do you know?
What programming languages do you know?
What is the most complex project that you have finished?
What is the most complex project that you have finished?
What makes you a good programmer?
What makes you a good programmer?
What are you doing to stay current on the latest technologies?
What are you doing to stay current on the latest technologies?
How do you approach a frustrating programming situation?
How do you approach a frustrating programming situation?
What programming languages do you know?
This is is a basic interview that might be more likely to introduce a series of technical programming questions that get progressively more and more complex. Answering this question serves the purpose of helping the interview decide if your skills match the role.
For example, if the company has adopted Python for development, it would be important to include Python in your answer. You can also use it to explain some of your more specialized education endeavors.
Example: “When I began programming, I started with C. Soon after I began learning I received a C certification. I’ve since learned Java and Javascript, as well as SQL and Python. I believe my familiarity with coding for both the frontend and backend makes me a good fit for enterprise businesses.”
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What is the most complex project that you have finished?
Talking about projects you’ve worked on provides you an opportunity to show your skills with real-world examples. In this question, you’ll learn about the STAR method of answering interview questions. STAR stands for:
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Situation: Describe a challenging situation.
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Task: Talk through the tasks that solved the issue and describe your role.
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Action: Demonstrate actions and strategies that helped you complete your objective.
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Result: Close with outcomes.
Situation: Describe a challenging situation.
Situation: Describe a challenging situation.
Task: Talk through the tasks that solved the issue and describe your role.
Task: Talk through the tasks that solved the issue and describe your role.
Action: Demonstrate actions and strategies that helped you complete your objective.
Action: Demonstrate actions and strategies that helped you complete your objective.
Result: Close with outcomes.
Result: Close with outcomes.
Example: _“When I was a freelancer, I created an e-commerce site for a client, Melbourne Glass. It was a challenge to get the customer’s outdated database to interact properly with the e-Commerce page in the CMS editor.*
*However, because I have a deep knowledge of front and backend systems, I was able to create code that pulled from the database inventory system when a customer completed actions like moving an item into a cart or making a purchase. This paid off because it allowed the customer’s business to become fully digital.”_
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What makes you a strong programmer?
This question allows you to provide some insight into yourself. To answer, consider what traits and skills make up a good programmer and explain thoroughly how they overlap with your traits, skills, personality and technical abilities.
This is a question that gives you room to talk about things outside of just how you can technically complete the job, so use this opportunity to explain skills like leadership, active listening and your ability to explain technical concepts clearly and concisely. Some skills that make a good programmer include:
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Ability to consistently write clean, working code
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Can perform code testing
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Adheres to deadlines
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Works well on a team or alone
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Knows the accepted best practices for specific coding languages
Ability to consistently write clean, working code
Ability to consistently write clean, working code
Can perform code testing
Can perform code testing
Adheres to deadlines
Adheres to deadlines
Works well on a team or alone
Works well on a team or alone
Knows the accepted best practices for specific coding languages
Knows the accepted best practices for specific coding languages
Example: “I’m a good programmer because I have a mastery of common languages that are valuable to enterprise businesses, I am thorough and write clean, efficient code and I am deadline oriented. I’m also skilled at explaining complex technical concepts in basic terms most people can understand.”
What are you doing to stay current on the latest technologies?
IT is a field that changes frequently, and programmers are expected to keep up with important changes to technology platforms, search engine updates, disruptive innovation in enterprise technology and more. In such a dynamic and creative field, programmers need to know what changes impact their operations. Answering this question gives you the opportunity to show you stay current with technology trends.
Example: “IT is a passion of mine and because of that I stay on top of technology trends. To do that, I follow enterprise technology blogs, participate in online and local IT communities where the exchange of ideas in encouraged and have search engine alerts set up to send me new content on trends like ‘Internet of Things’ and cloud technology.”
How do you approach a frustrating programming situation?
While some questions above have been technical, this is a behavioral question that seeks to understand how you handle high-stress situations like the ones you come across as a programmer.
You can answer it thoroughly by describing one of your experiences using the STAR method of answering interview questions. You also want to think about the language you lose to talk about things that are frustrating and upsetting. Respond calmly and respectfully of previous employers and coworkers.
Example: “In coding situations that frustrate me, rather than getting angry or upset or flustered, I turn to an online community that can help me solve the problem. For example, when working at the National Geological Society of South Bend I was coding an enterprise CRM with a proprietary coding language I had never used before.
I needed to program the CRM to handle custom workflows but was struggling with my code. I asked for help in the internet community for the database, and received an answer within 15 minutes. Another community member helped me fix my code so the workflows functioned properly.”
How to prepare for a programmer interview
Knowledge and skill may be crucial to securing the job, but your ability to perform socially can make the difference when an interview is faced with a tough hiring decision. Besides knowing the answers to these interview questions and more that might come up in a programmer interviewer, consider the following tips to be ready for your interview:
1. Be personable
If you want to leave a good impression on the interviewer, then be personable. You want to present yourself in a relatable way so that the interviewer gets to see who you are. Being personable goes a long way toward building connections and you want to build a connection with the interviewer from the beginning. This will help you stand out in his or her mind and place you above other candidates.
2. Find supporting data from past work
Select previous projects that you can use as evidence of your skills and effort. The ability to do the job is the most basic requirement that he or she is looking for and showing your real-world experience can make a difference in an interview.
3. Double-check your work
If you are required to take a test where you create code, double-check your work. It is easy to make simple mistakes. However, the worst thing that you could do is submit code with errors. You don’t want the interviewer to think you don’t have the basic skills needed to program. A simple review can mean the difference between getting the job or getting disqualified.
Double-checking your work could also show the interviewer you have a professional production mindset and you are focused on creating quality code. Even if your solution is wrong, submitting code that is otherwise entirely correct could show that you have the skills to solve the problem given more time and information. That ability can be valuable to a software company.